Full confession: I occasionally picked my nose when I was a kid. I bet you find that both shocking and abhorrent. It gets worse. When my dad would catch me with one of my phalanges flying up a nostril, rather than chastise me, he would look my way and say, “pick a winner”. Oddly, I am at a loss as to why this little story came to mind when considering the challenge of finding good people to bring into an organization. Hiring managers root around using the latest interview techniques, assessments, background checks and the like to pick winners. But, no matter how many tools are brought to bear, they still wind up with their fair share of boogers.
So how do you stop picking boogers? There may not be a simple answer or a panacea. I do know that “fit” is a huge factor. A lot of excellent scholarly articles have been written on the subject. But, since I have already referenced nose picking and boogers, this is not one of them. My informality, however, does help to illustrate the point I am hoping to make. Which is that at some point, you need to trust your gut. Feel and intuition still play a significant role in making good hiring decisions. I worry that we have lessened our reliance on both in deference to the latest tools, tests, and apps.
Please don’t misunderstand me. I believe in many of the new tools and assessment techniques, but I don’t see them as the only answer. I am convinced that they become far more effective when used in concert with feel and intuition. I have a systematic approach to using feel and intuition in the hiring process. Yes, I know that sounds counterintuitive—a systematic approach to gut feel.
Ready? It is pretty simple. You have good “people people” in your organization. You know the ones; these are the folks who seem to be able to read others well. Grab a few of them. Next, find your favorite contrarian or resident curmudgeon. This individual always tells you that every new idea or hire will fail. Now, you have your interview panel. Next, develop a set of questions that focuses on fit and temperament. Questions such as, “Tell me about the last time you got mad at someone at work”? Or,” Tell me about a time that you knew you were right, but still had to follow a specific plan?”.
Your candidate will then meet with your panel and be asked those questions. Panelists will rate each response on a scale of 1-5, with one being unfavorable and five favorable. Next, let each candidate know that the interview process is reciprocal, and they should be prepared with questions to ask each interview panel member. You can learn a lot about a person from the quality of their questions.
When the interviews are complete, pull your team together. Your good “people, people” should have all rated candidates similarly. Promising prospects should have average ratings in the 4-5 range. Your contrarian or resident curmudgeon should be convinced you picked another booger. The candidate’s questions should be about how to make an impact or what the team needs from the role, and not about how much personal time off is given or happy hours attended. Take these findings and merge them with those you received from your latest tools, assessments, and apps. If they align, then maybe, just maybe, you have picked a winner.
Regardless of what is done, you will still pick a booger or two. Sometimes people are just great performers in an interview and poor performers at their job. The key is to flick that booger off and keep on hunting. Here’s hoping you pick some winners.
